Walk Around San Jose Downtown

[kevin_standlee]

If you're wondering what the area around the San Jose Westercon bid's proposed site is like, we've posted a video slide show of a walking tour around the area. This is based on photos (and some live video) I took in late January and concentrates on restaurants, shops, and services (plus things like where to park) in the downtown San Jose area centered on the Fairmont Hotel.

I'm particularly sensitive to this issue because one of the complaints I heard during ConJose was that "There's nothing here" on account of if you walked out the front door of the Convention Center, you indeed could not see any restaurants within line of sight. There were and are, however, lots of restaurants in the area; they're just a little bit beyond that first row of buildings blocking your view from the Convention Center. So this video is partially my way of saying, "There are places to eat around here, and here's proof."

And I literally walked the walk here, because aside from driving to the hotel itself -- my van is in one of the shots -- everything here was a result of me walking around with a camera.

Comments

[peanut13171.livejournal.com]

Well, *I* thought the restaurants around Conjose were terrific. Nice range of prices and types of cuisine. Admittedly, we stuck mostly to the less expensive places. What I also liked was there was a market nearby so my cash-strapped friends could get cereal and yogurt for breakfast.

Don't take criticisms so to heart, please. IIRC, most cons give info on nearby eateries so the people complaining are just too freaking lame to read all the stuff they're given. Or too lazy to *ask* other congoers about good places to eat. We did that in Denver and got some great suggestions.

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

That reminds me: who's doing the local guide for WFC? I'd be happy to submit reviews of restaurants and local attractions, and can offer the guide I compiled for this year's Potlatch as an example of my work. (Unfortunately little of the data would be of use, as our geographic net didn't go as far as downtown San Jose.)

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

I don't know who is doing the local guide. I know I appreciated the work you did canvassing the area near the Domain, even though I didn't attend Potlatch. Ground-pounding is hard work. I'll write to you directly; you and WFC chair Dave Gallaher should probably talk.

[n5red.livejournal.com]

I was quite happy with the ConJose site. Plenty of places to eat that were very close.

Next time there needs to be more cymbalom music, though..

[twilight2000.livejournal.com]

I *loved* the restaurants around Con Jose - it just took walking past one row of buildings from that point - and from the Fairmont, it's just outside the backdoor - this is a great presentation - I'm thinking of goosing a couple of other cons to do something similar ;>.

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It took me several hours of walking around with the camera, which I combined with the trip to that San Jose Stealth lacrosse game to which I won the free tickets last January. And having a reason to be down there early on Saturday morning meant that I could take photos without disturbing people, before places were open and all that.

Window Movie Maker is what I used to make the presentation. It's more effective with music, but I don't have anything I can legally add to it. I may have something added to it by Norwescon, though; if the tech doesn't let us down, we expect to be showing the presentation "in the background" at our room party on Saturday night.

[twilight2000.livejournal.com]

A job like that takes a lot of work - but I suspect it's well worth it for any bid that either has competition or something to prove ;>.

And whether I use WMM or iMovie, I'm sure I can manage it once I get the raw footage...thanks!

[redneckotaku.livejournal.com]

I would love to see Anime USA do something like this. I hear this complaint alot from people who go to events at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City.